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Friday, February 17, 2017

As always prevention is the key. Maintaining the condition of our heart is important, no matter if you are working with a healthy heart, or have had a stroke, high blood pressure, congestive heart failure....aromatherapy can help! Here are a few recipes:

Monday, February 13, 2017

February 11 is a Penumbral Lunar Eclipse. A penumbral lunar eclipse occurs when the Moon passes through the Earth's partial shadow, or penumbra. The eclipse occurs when the earth comes between the moon and the Sun, cutting off the light of the Sun from the moon. A lunar eclipse is always on a full moon and represents an ending or culmination points. During this type of eclipse the Moon will darken slightly but not completely. The eclipse will be visible throughout most of eastern South America, eastern Canada, the Atlantic Ocean, Europe, Africa, and western Asia.

Emotionally and metaphysically, this represents the bringing up of memories, reoccurring dreams and powerful emotions. A lunar eclipse of the moon can help us to anticipate major changes that are forthcoming in our own lives.

It is a moment when the effects of the full moon are very much amplified, while the South Node of the moon is getting enlightened by the Sun, and the North Node, brings forth our deepest aspirations and intuitions toward our spiritual meaning in this life.

An eclipse of the moon in our dreams has to do with the mentalities and should only be interpreted in context with the rest of the dream; it could also be your souls way of telling you to keep your head in tense situations. This energy brings issues and situations into clarity and brings forth sudden endings… all for our greatest good.

Often eclipse energy instigates pushes us forward and gives us warnings of what is ahead. Eclipses can be challenging energy to navigate but they also reveal truths to us which forces us to grow and become more conscious, as we move forward in areas where we have been stuck. Eclipses are a dramatic and effective tool that Universe uses to create change.

Change is inevitable.

Our lives are made up of the building blocks of change. Change creates the person we must grow to be. Change happens for a reason. That reason is to allow us possibilities we may not have seen in the first place. This can be traumatic or it can be less so.

The single most important point you can make about change is that in most cases it's not what faces you that's the problem, it's how you react to it.

How you react is determined by how you perceive a particular change. The Chinese word for crisis is "weiji". Two characters that separately mean danger and opportunity. Every problem we encounter in life can be viewed that way. It is a chance to show that we can handle it. Changing the way you think, can change a life of stress and discomfort to a life of challenge and excitement.

It is important to embrace the transition! Struggling, kicking and screaming and dragging your heals will only prolong trying to control the uncontrollable. Learn to recognize strengths you may have overlooked. Embrace optimism and reform your old belief system. Honor the new you, which you are transforming into. Here are some ways to embrace change:

1. Be Flexible. You have a rigid, mind set about work, relationships, kids or lifestyle. Learn a lesson from the willow tree and its ability to bend in the great wind. Where as, when we are rigid like the old oak tree, we can easily break apart under the stress of change. Learn to relax and follow the path unfolding before you..

2. Take Everything one day at a time. Sometimes situations can become overwhelming when looking at the big picture. Again, take your quiet time to observe the moment. Allow yourself to take all the time, take the space that you need to grasp the change.

3. Breath. Deep breathing allows us to open our chest and expand. It clears our minds and bodies of toxins and should be used as a tool for change. Allow the breathe to cleanse you and make room for change. Make room for something different.

4. Support. We are always put at ease when we have support behind us. In these vulnerable moments, we can find strength in others. If you have a good friend, a family member, a loved one or a community group that you can turn to, do so. Be sure that this support comes from a positive, unbiased source. Otherwise, it can be more damaging than good. Rest assure, there have been others who have gone through what you are experiencing right now. See if you can take away with you some of their positive pearls of wisdom.

5. Love Yourself. You are the true source to your own happiness. You have to live within yourself. You have to be at peace within yourself. Only you can do that. Only you can make that happen. We each have our own way of being with ourselves, but there is only one way to be at ease with your soul. That is to love yourself, always.

6. Our Belief System is one of the major factors that can get us through situations or can cause our life to crumble around us! I do believe that there is a lot of innate goodness and balancing our minds do subconsciously to get us through hard times. The other portion of this is how we "program" ourselves to deal with any given situation.

7. Let go of Ego. Embracing peace of mind, optimism, the ability to forgive, and a sense of humor are all good ways to allow the ego to step aside and make room for some humble pie.

Sunday, February 12, 2017

Finding Fitness: 10 Ways to Fit In Exercise

The "E" word can make you cringe, but exercise is really necessary.
Besides, it can be fun: Learn how to squeeze fitness into your busy day.

The benefits of regular exercise are unrivaled: Physical activity can
help you lose weight and prevent a host of ailments, including heart disease, diabetes, and osteoporosis. Being fit also can help you stay mentally sharp.While
most people know they should exercise, you may not know where to start
or how to fit it into a busy schedule. The American College of Sports
Medicine (ACSM) and the American Heart Association (AHA) recommend that
healthy adults get at least 150 minutes of moderate-intensity aerobic
activity spread out over five days a week, or 20 minutes of
vigorous-intensity aerobic activity on each of three days a week.“This
is something we recommend to all Americans,” says Gerald Fletcher, MD, a
cardiologist at the Mayo Clinic in Jacksonville, Fla., and a spokesman
for the AHA.

An ideal fitness routine also
includes resistance or weight training to improve muscle strength and
endurance. The ACSM and the AHA recommend that most adults engage in
resistance training at least twice a week.

Finding Fitness: 10 Ways to Get in Exercise

Sometimes
the problem isn’t motivation — it’s simply finding the time. But
scheduling exercise isn’t as difficult as you might think. Here are 10
ways to get you moving more often:

Be less efficient. People typically try to think of ways to make daily tasks easier. But
if we make them harder, we can get more exercise, says Sabrena Merrill,
MS, of Lawrence, Kan., a certified personal trainer, group fitness
instructor, and spokeswoman for the American Council on Exercise (ACE).
“Bring in the groceries from your car one bag at a time so you have to
make several trips,” Merrill says. “Put the laundry away a few items at a
time, rather than carrying it up in a basket.”

Shun labor-saving devices.
Wash the car by hand rather than taking it to the car wash. “It takes
about an hour and a half to do a good job, and in the meantime you’ve
gotten great exercise,” Merrill says. Use a push mower rather than a
riding mower to groom your lawn.

Going somewhere? Take the long way.
Walking up or down a few flights of stairs each day can be good for
your heart. Avoid elevators and escalators whenever possible. If you
ride the bus or subway to work, get off a stop before your office and
walk the extra distance. When you go to the mall or the grocery store,
park furthest from the entrance, not as close to it as you can, and
you'll get a few extra minutes of walking — one of the best exercises
there is, Dr. Fletcher says. “Walking is great because anyone can do it
and you don’t need any special equipment other than a properly fitting
pair of sneakers.”

Be a morning person. Studies
show that people who exercise in the morning are more likely to stick
with it. As Merrill explains, “Are you going to feel like exercising at
the end of a hard day? Probably not. If you do your workout in the
morning, you’re not only more likely to do it, but you'll also set a
positive tone for the day.”

Ink the deal.
Whether morning, afternoon, or evening, pick the time that is most
convenient for you to exercise and write it down in your daily planner.
Keep your exercise routine as you would keep any appointment.

Watch your step.
Investing in a good pedometer can help you stay motivated. “If you have
a pedometer attached to your waist and you can see how many steps
you’ve taken, you’ll see it doesn’t take long to walk 5,000 steps and
you will be inspired,” Merrill says. And building up to 10,000 steps a
day won’t seem like such a daunting a task.

Hire the right help.
While weight training is important, if you don’t know what you’re
doing, you run the risk of injuring yourself or not being effective,
Merrill says. It’s best to get instructions from a personal trainer at
the gym. You also can buy a weight-training DVD and follow along in your
living room.

Keep records. Grab a diary or
logbook, and every day that you exercise, write down what you did and
for how long. Your records will make it easy for you to see what you’ve
accomplished and make you more accountable. Blank pages? You’d be
ashamed.

Phone a friend. Find someone who likes
the same activity that you do — walking in the neighborhood, riding
bikes, playing tennis — and make a date to do it together. “Exercising
with a friend or in a group can be very motivating,” Fletcher says. “You
are likely to walk longer or bike greater distances if you’re talking
to a friend along the way. The time will go by faster.” Don’t have a
buddy who is available? Grab an MP3 player and listen to your favorite
music or an audio book while exercising.

Do what you like.
Whatever exercise you choose, be sure it’s one that you enjoy. You’re
more likely to stick with it if it’s something you have fun doing rather
than something you see as a chore, Fletcher says.

If
you can’t fit 30 minutes a day into your schedule, get more exercise
simply by being less efficient with your chores and adding a little
extra walking distance everywhere you go. However, if you pick an
activity you like, finding time for fitness will become effortless and
the rewards enormous.